Properties of potentially biodegradable copolyesters of (succinic acid–1,4‐butanediol)/(dimethyl terephthalate–1,4‐butanediol)

Despite progress in the development of biodegradable polyesters, little attention has been given to aliphatic/aromatic copolyesters. Therefore, a series of such copolyesters has been synthesized by polycondensation of succinic acid (SA), dimethyl terephthalate (DMT) and 1,4-butanediol (BD), and their material characteristics and biodegradability have been examined. The chemical composition of the aliphatic/aromatic copolyesters strongly influences the material characteristics and biodegradability. For the copolyesters with a DMT–BD mole fraction of less than 0.2, an optimum between physical properties and biodegradability seems attainable. © 1999 Society of Chemical Industry